US correspondent for Fairfax Media

US Senator John McCain says Russian President Vladimir Putin should be banned from the G20 in Australia in November. Photo: AFP

Outspoken Republican senator and former presidential candidate John McCain has said the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, should not be invited to attend the G20 and attacked European sanctions against Russia as “a joke”.

“Putin should be treated as the international pariah that he is,” Senator McCain told News Corp’s The Australian. The Senator, who is a member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, said that President Putin should not be allowed to attend the leaders’ summit in Australia in December.

Senator McCain has toed a consistently strong line against Russia for its support of rebels in Eastern Ukraine, calling for US President Barack Obama to arm the Ukrainian government.

In response to the decision by European foreign ministers on Tuesday to broaden sanctions against but not increase their severity, Senator McCain said, “It's a joke and they will do nothing and I predicted they would do nothing".

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Describing President Putin as a “KGB thug”, he told London’s Telegraph newspaper, “[European leaders] will continue to do nothing until the day they become independent of Russian energy. Until then they will talk."

Senator McCain is one of several American politicians growing increasingly frustrated at what they perceive to be lack of action against Russia.

On the Senate floor, Republican Dan Coats said, “I suggest we do whatever is necessary to bring Russia’s economy to its knees," he said. "We need to see that [Russian] stock market plummet. We need to see confidence and support for anything Russia makes or exports denied.”

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop told Fairfax Media that her primary focus was the repatriation of remains of victims and the establishment of the investigation into the attack that brought down flight MH17. Until that was in place she would not address sanctions, she said.